TORONTO - Progressive Conservative leader Tim Hudak says he would pull the plug on the Ontario Power Authority if he is elected premier this fall.
"This is a needless layer of bureaucracy that is getting fatter and fatter every year," Hudak told reporters at the provincial legislature Tuesday. "We would close the doors on this wasteful bureaucracy and pass on the savings to the hydro bills of Ontario families."
The independent, non-profit corporation oversees the province's energy system and answers to the Ministry of Energy.
Hudak says the agency duplicates work that is already being done by the ministry and local utilities.
"The OPA might as well be called the Ontario Propaganda Authority," said Hudak. "They're using money from your hydro bills to throw up ads promoting the government."
Finance Minister Dwight Duncan says the agency should not be dismantled because it allows the energy ministry to contract for power.
"I think the work the OPA does is important, particularly given the way we broke up the old Ontario Hydro," Duncan said. "But we'll continue to look for efficiencies in all agencies."
The Tories have been arguing over the past weeks that smart metres and the harmonized sales tax have made hydro unaffordable for Ontario families.
The Ontario New Democrats have voiced similar concerns.
Hudak has promised a Conservative government would allow people to revert from smart metres to the old two-tiered pricing system, where they are charged for total usage.
Dismantling the power authority would produce further savings for Ontario families, Hudak said.
Energy Minister Brad Duguid has said the smart metres are needed to modernize Ontario's power system, and will result in savings in the long run.
